Italian Tomato Sauce (Sugo di Pomodoro)

This Italian Tomato Sauce is a classic and flavorful sauce made with pantry staples like canned tomatoes, onion, carrots, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, and dried oregano. It’s quick and easy to make, and tastes delicious tossed with your favorite pasta or served with crusty bread for dipping.  

This is our family’s favorite Italian tomato sauce recipe, also known as ‘Sugo di Pomodoro’. My picky toddler could eat this pasta sauce tossed with spaghetti noodles every night for dinner if she had it her way. It’s seriously THAT good!

I make this sauce regularly and like to keep a batch in the freezer for easy weeknight meals. It takes only 30 minutes to cook, but it tastes like it’s been simmering on the stove all day.

This Sugo di Pomodoro is made by simmering tomatoes, onions, carrots, garlic, and dried oregano in olive oil. It’s a staple in Italian cooking that you can use for dishes like pasta, pizza, or a dipping sauce for bread.

The final texture is a smooth and velvety sauce, but you can choose to leave it chunky if you prefer a more rustic sauce.

Since there are minimal ingredients in this recipe, I recommend using the highest quality ingredients you can afford. This includes good quality olive oil and canned Italian tomatoes.

If you like this tomato sauce, check out my Homemade Marinara or Roasted Tomato Pasta Sauce recipe here.

Italian Tomato Sauce Ingredients

Extra virgin olive oil: This adds richness to the sauce.

Yellow onion: I recommend using yellow onions become they more mellow and sweeter when cooked.

Carrot: Carrots help absorb some of the acidity of the tomatoes and balance the flavor.

Garlic: Always use fresh garlic in this recipe. It tastes better than pre-minced jarred garlic.

Dried oregano: You can make this sauce without adding any herbs, but I think it tastes the best with a little dried oregano.

Red pepper flakes: This adds a little heat to the tomato sauce. You can omit it if you’re sensitive to spice.

Whole peeled tomatoes: I recommend using San Marzano tomatoes. These are Italian plum tomatoes which have more tomato flesh, less seeds, and lower water content, which makes an incredible sauce.

If you can’t find San Marzano tomatoes, then try to use canned tomatoes that are from Italy. These are usually higher quality than other tomatoes and are perfect for making tomato sauce.

Baking soda: Adding a little baking soda in tomato sauce can help neutralize its acidity, which makes it less sour and sweeter.

Salt: This helps to enhance the flavor and balance the acidity of the tomatoes.

Balsamic vinegar (or sugar): This helps reduce the acidity of the tomatoes by adding some sweetness to the sauce. You can use granulated sugar or brown if you prefer.

Fresh basil: If you’re serving this sauce with pasta, I like to add a little fresh basil for garnish. You can also add a few leaves of chopped basil directly to the pasta sauce if desired.

How to make homemade Italian Tomato Sauce

Saute the veggies. Add the olive oil to a large pot over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the onion, carrot, and crushed garlic. Let cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often to prevent the garlic from burning.

Cook the sauce. Add the dried oregano, a pinch of red pepper flakes, the canned tomatoes and their juices, 1 ¾ cup water, baking soda, salt, and balsamic vinegar (or sugar if using). Bring to a boil for 1 minute, then reduce the heat to low and let simmer, uncovered, for 25 minutes.

Puree the sauce. Remove the pot from the heat. Use an immersion blender to puree the sauce until smooth. Serve tossed with your favorite pasta.

How to serve Italian Tomato Sauce with pasta

If you want to serve this tomato sauce with pasta, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add your pasta of choice and cook until al dente according to the package instructions.

Drain the pasta, reserving some of the pasta cooking water.

Add the pasta to a large bowl or back to the pot. Add some of the finished pasta sauce to the pasta and toss until evenly coated. If needed, add a little of the reserved pasta water if the pasta seems too dry.

Serve each bowl of pasta with an extra spoonful of tomato sauce on top. Garnish with fresh basil and a generous amount of freshly grated parmesan cheese if desired.

Please let me know how you like this Italian Tomato Sauce recipe in the comments below! Your feedback and review encourages me to keep creating new and yummy recipes. I hope you love this sugo as much as I do.

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